Around the World
by breather89
Summary: When three people pretending to be social workers abduct the Dumping Ground kids and sell them across the world, how are they ever going to escape? While Faith suffers, Carmen and Tee are young brides. Also, when Johnny gets the chance, he is determined to find his sister...
1. Chapter 1

A Child is Missing

Faith groaned as she tried with her IPod, the songs really low and mumbled.

She'd been trying for an hour to work out why the headphones weren't working and she'd just given up.

She looked up to see a man with large glasses and aged about forty walk in. "Who are you?" she questioned.

"I'm Mr McLaughlin. Mr Milligan said you were getting new staff members for the week?" Faith remembered.

Mike had said that they'd get some staff members in for the next week while May-Li was ill and that they'd be studying them for work. Mr McLaughlin, Mr Kelly and Ms Wilson.

Faith got up, deciding to make a good first impression. "How are you?" she asked. Then Mr Laughlin handed Faith a bag and she nearly dropped it from the weight. "Put this in the office, kid."

***Mr Kelly scanned the hallway, while Ms Wilson was unpacking. Mr Kelly was in his late twenties, but looked and acted older, with a brown jumper and a black booklet.

He frowned as Ms Wilson, a normal looking woman in her twenties with orange earrings and flat brown hair, pulled a suitcase in.

"Damn kids," she whinged, "anyone would think being an orphan was fun."

Mr Kelly looked at her, slightly smiling. "It's only a week, honey. Then we'll have enough money to go to the Caribbean." Ms Wilson held her shoulder bag, smiling up at him.

Then they looked at the stairs. Harry was standing there, arms on the bannister. "Who are you?"

Ms Wilson came up, smiling. She knew how to handle little kids. "Hello there, my name is Ms Wilson. Mr Milligan is here to see us." Then she grinned, showing her pearly teeth. "Don't be scared. We're here to protect you."

Harry raised an eyebrow. This woman didn't seem right. Then the office door opened. Mike stood there.

"Hello Mr Milligan," Mr Kelly went to Mike, "I am Mr Kelly, Mr McLaughlin is in the kitchen and this is Ms Wilson." Mike put his hand out as the two shook them. "Nice to meet you. Oh, call me Mike. By the way, you do realise it's only temporary?"  
Ms Wilson nodded. "Mr Kelly and I are training to be social workers. Mr McLaughlin said that would be fine if we could watch the kids."

She gave that flattering smile. Mike diverted his eyes to Mr Kelly, making Ms Wilson frown. Well, he wasn't easily distracted.

That night, Faith was in the den, using the laptop, when she seemed to notice something.

It was a news article. It depicted a large orange-brick house, with ivy and a small tree outside, with crime scene tape around. The word 'orphanage' caught her eye.

_MASS DISAPPEARANCE AT NORFOLK ORPHANAGE_

_Between 7__th__ April and 18__th__ April, school authorities were told that the eight children residing inside, between the ages of four and sixteen, were going to France on holiday._

_However, on 21__st__ April, police came round to see why the eight children had not attended school that Monday. They found a horrific scene._

_The bed sheets were all on the floors, the kitchen was a mess, with weeks-old food left behind, the television was still on and there was curtains loose._

_But the worst part was that the head care worker, Mr Joseph Hamilton, was dead._

_It is unknown how long he was dead for, as police decided to do an autopsy. But the eight children from inside the orphanage are still missing._

_Their passports had been stolen, and this gave an idea that they were taken abroad._

_The children, James Colton, 16, Tammy Headway, 14, Timothy Calsta, 14, Ruby Whittle, 12, Ronald Grayson, 11, twins Mandy and Mindy Sampson, 9, and Evie Cameroon, 4, are missing. The social workers reportedly with them at the time were found to have had fake records._

_The social workers called themselves Peter Taylor, James Britton and Cathy Kelly. These names have since been announced as false._

_Peter Taylor was in his late forties, James Britton estimated to be between 25 and 35 years old, according to different accounts, Cathy Wilson between 20 and 30 years old, according to different accounts. Suspect sketches of them are below._

The article went on, saying what the children looked like. Three black, two white, two mixed-race, one Asian. One had asthma, Tammy had broken her leg three months earlier.

But Faith just didn't seem to connect the dots.

If she had, a lot of trouble would have been avoided.

In the den, sitting on the sofa, Mr Kelly and Ms Wilson were opposite the children. They didn't know what to ask the new staff, and were confused as to why they looked a little stern.

"How long will you be here?" Carmen finally managed to ask, after endless silence.

Mr Kelly answered, "Well, not very long, a few weeks, I guess?"

Harry then questioned, "Are you here while May-Li's sick?"

Ms Wilson nodded.

Then she smiled at them all, creepily. "Don't worry though. The time will just fly past. And you'll notice a lot of changes. Soon."

Tyler was in his room later, thinking. The new social workers seemed odd. He'd seen one of them with a shoulder bag and she never took it off, even when she went in the bathroom. He wondered what she had inside.

He looked outside his room to see the woman talking on a phone, drumming her nails on the bannister. "Yeah, yeah." She mumbled, "The nine o'clock train. Yeah. Turkey. Turkey! How many times do I have to tell you?" then she sighed. "All right. All right. I'll pay you for your trouble."

She swore as she turned the phone off and started putting it in her bag. Then she heard a crash downstairs and ran.

Tyler decided this was his only chance. He tiptoed up to the bag and used the light on her phone to look at what was inside. Small bits of jewellery, not quite exciting, a guidebook of Germany, a small set of papers held together by elastic band.

He looked at them. They went back over a year and a half.

There was a black booklet in the bag. Tyler had an idea.

Looking in, he ripped what seemed interesting, went back to his room and turned the lamp on.

He stared at the paper as he held it close.

"Lincolnshire, 9, Norfolk, 8, Aberdeen, 11, Manchester, 4?" then a list of names. "Emily, Jack, Josh, Lucy, Daniel, Oliver, Grace, Mohammed, Andy?" it was written under _Lincolnshire_, circled, with two fourteens, one twelve, two elevens and three sevens.

Then he saw country names. "Spain, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Turkey…"

He turned over the page, "Rwanda, South Africa, Peru, Cuba, China, Japan, Thailand?"

He also saw a crudely-drawn map of Europe, with a dot in Switzerland.

Whatever he'd found, it wasn't normal.

Downstairs, Ms Wilson was screaming at Carmen, who'd dropped a plate.

"You stupid little cow! Don't you know you shouldn't be down here at night? If I could, I'd slap you silly!"  
Then she pointed upstairs and Carmen rushed up. Ms Wilson then felt for her bag, noticed it had gone, and ran upstairs.

She saw the light of her phone by her bag and knelt down to grab it. Looking in her bag, she found the booklet had been opened. The front page missing. She saw the only room with a light and stormed in.

Tyler looked up as Ms Wilson entered. She smirked at him as he sat frozen. She leant down and with pristine nails picked up the piece of paper and read it.

"So," she calmly and eerily asked, "how much?"

Tyler squeaked, "Most."

Then she asked, "Do you know what this is?"

He shook his head.

"It's a complicated operation that actually provides quite an income. You don't think these earrings are cheap? Well, they are, but we're ready now."

Tyler then asked, "What are you going to do?"

She picked up the phone and pressed Mr McLaughlin's number. "Well, we'll see, won't we?"

The next morning, Mike was setting the breakfast table when he saw Mr McLaughlin in the kitchen, putting his phone down. "Mr McLaughlin?" he asked.

The man turned. "Oh, just sorting out a few orders. Getting a new mattress so I need to go soon."

Mike then asked, "Was there any trouble last night?" the other man shook his head. "No, no trouble."

Mike then asked, "Why's the minibus outside? We're not going anywhere today."  
Mr McLaughlin simply told him, "Just wait for everyone else to arrive and it'll be simple."

Ms Wilson looked over the piece of paper in her hand. This had taken quicker than expected. In the last few, they'd masqueraded as social workers for just a few weeks. This one had to be taken forward. They'd contacted their customers and told them it may take a bit quicker.

Ms Wilson applied her lipstick in the mirror and pecked her lips. She smiled as she began to think. Oh, she knew what these kids went through. Care. She'd been a care kid. Until she decided to make her own way.

The others would be arriving soon. Just one driver, who didn't care much about who he took, two loaders, who didn't speak English, each paid about £250 there and back and they didn't care.

Ms Wilson looked over at McLaughlin, who was checking his watch. "How long?" "Ten minutes." "How many?"

"Six." Her eyes widened. "Really? The most we've done at once is four." "Kid," he teased her, "it's quick. Your fiancée's staying here and watching the rest. He's got them locked up in three rooms. It's easy."

Wilson queried, "Which ones?"

"Oldest boy, has cerebral palsy, just good to get out the way, oldest girl, black, about the age you were when you met Kelly, thirteen-year-old girl with flat brown hair, fourteen-year-old girl, Mediterranean, thirteen-year-old boy, mixed-race, fourteen-year-old boy, black."

Wilson nodded, hands on hips. "Who's left?"

He looked in his booklet. "Six-year-old girl, red hair, ten-year-old boy, blonde hair, eleven-year-old boy, dark hair, fifteen-year-old boy, dark hair, fifteen-year-old boy, brown hair, thirteen-year-old girl, black hair, but I seriously think we'll need to take them soon."

Ms Wilson then asked, "Where are we stopping this time?" "Once in Paris, then Amsterdam, we're skipping Berlin, Zurich, Rome, Athens and Istanbul."

She then smiled softly. "The next lot?"  
"Well, we've got a call from Spain and two from China, one from Japan and one from Thailand. Also, there's one in Cuba, but he hasn't really decided."

Ms Wilson smirked, looking upstairs. "Things are going smoothly."

Jody's eyes flickered. The last thing she knew, she'd been at the table eating breakfast. Then she'd got blurred vision and fell asleep at the table.

She had no idea what it was, but she looked round.

It was Carmen's room. She was on one of the beds, with Floss on the other, fast asleep. She didn't know what was going on. Getting up, she tried the door, but found it was locked. She started banging, screaming.

The only person who heard the banging was Harry, who was in Frank's room. Waking up, he heard banging, Jody shouting and sobbing. He saw Rick on the floor, fast asleep. Harry just whimpered, looking round. He'd been trapped and had never felt so worried.

Johnny and Mo were in Mo's room, the windows boarded up with cardboard. Both fast asleep, oblivious to the noise outside.

Or even what future they may end up with.

In the minibus, Carmen's eyelids began to flicker. She could see that new guy, the older one, at the wheel. She was still in her pyjamas, completely drowsy and her head ached.

She looked across, her eyes still slightly blurred, and saw Tee in the opposite seat, head resting against the back. Looking behind her, she saw Frank and Faith on the seats behind them, and Tyler and Bailey on the very back.

Carmen tried sitting up, but felt her wrists wouldn't move. Both her hands and ankles were held together with zip ties.

Now her vision was getting better, she could see that Tee was tied up too, and that the new female care worker was coming on board.

As the woman sat down next to Carmen, the frightened teenager asked, "What's going on?" the woman looked at her, emotionless.

"Have you ever visited Greece?"

Carmen shook her head.  
"Well, you're going there soon."

**A/N: Do you like it?**


	2. Chapter 2

Cathy's Story

When they'd reached Paris, after driving the sleeping or still sleepy children through the tunnel, Mr Kelly parked the minibus in a car park just a short walk from a French train station in the country.

They'd been travelling for three and a half hours, those that had woken up were shaking and terrified and lucky to avoid being checked.

But Ms Wilson and Mr Kelly had apparently managed it before. And when Tyler had asked, Mr Kelly answered,

"Because they don't bother to check when people are coming out. When they're coming in, it's constant, but coming out is just a brief scan. Anyway, you're teenagers, so I really think the guards would have looked the other way if you were asleep."

Frank asked, partly anger towards them and partly worry for everybody's safety, "Where are you taking us?"

Mr Kelly grinned and then asked Ms Wilson, "Shall you tell them or shall I?"

Ms Wilson then peered round at all the children, turned on her side and started childish smiling.

"Well, being in care doesn't exactly give you a lot of job opportunities for when you leave. You can end up homeless or with bad jobs that involve terrible hours, terrible pay and your bosses will be racist and sexist.

"If you go with us, however, you'll get three meals a day, shelter and a job. We're selling you. Around two years ago, we three got promised £15,000 if we managed to take a child to South Africa. Now, my partners were a little worried, because people would notice. And picking up runaway teens is a bit hard, especially as they're defensive.

"So I remembered my childhood in care and they decided to take kids in care. We made several false IDs and passports and since 'Mr McLaughlin' and 'Mr Kelly' are both out of work, in McLaughlin's case it's because he's been in a mental hospital for six months, and in my fiancée's case, it's because he's been ill, and I'm a housewife, we had opportunities. We'd get the places we needed from our boss, he's an international smuggler," she grinned with admiration, "and we'd do everywhere."

Then Frank asked, in disbelief, "And you really allow this to happen to us? We're kids! You said you went in care; don't you know how we've suffered!"  
"I do, actually," Ms Wilson leaned back, "I wasn't always the confident woman…"

_I was born Cathy Wilson on 15__th__ May 1993. I was in a town in Oxfordshire. When I was ten, my mum couldn't cope and put me in care. She said it was because she hated me and my father was abusive so I reminded her of him._

_I was fifteen when I finally took the guts to run away. After a week, I found Mr Kelly in Essex. He was called Darren Robinson then. He was twenty-one, but we felt as if we belonged together._

_He'd been brought up by his loud, aggressive mother. He still lived with her. Graduated college that year and was working at a bakery. She told him that he never achieved the goals she'd set for him when he was younger and criticised him._

_But Darren and I wondered about maybe settling down, as soon as I turned sixteen in five months._

_We'd move to the Caribbean and get married there. But his mother was in the way. She often reminded me of _Psycho_._

_So just two months before my sixteenth birthday, we planned it. His friend from the village, Peter Mountney, you know him as Mr McLaughlin, would take me in while everything was sorted, and we'd kill his mother._

_He said he never liked her, was a monster after his dad died when he was six. Said he was horrendous and reminded her of him. That's one of the reasons I got on with him._

_So we killed her in about March 2009. He smothered her, I stabbed her._

_The body was buried somewhere in the country about twenty-five miles from his home. He reported his mother missing the next day. He was a suspect, of course, and that was partly why I stayed at Mountney's house, but he managed to get a watertight alibi. And he only moved about two years later to give time._

_We'd agreed not to get married until we reached the Caribbean and got jobs. It was also in November 2008 when I finally visited the care home again, to get my passport._

_I said I was sorry I ran away and gave some story about being in a London hostel. They seemed to forgive me and they seemed interested I managed to get a place. I'd broken into a building and had squatted. Mountney helped me decorate. He used to be a driver._

_He used a fake identity – he used a lot of computers as well – and said he was a social worker and he'd found a place for me after I'd used a fake name._

_He pretended, his little sob story, that I'd been naughty, but I could still use the house._

_I was in care. My social workers had believed him. I'd run away. What else would they do?_

_I stole my passport in March 2010 and pretended to now go to college. In fact, I moved in with Darren._

_He was so nice. But when he fell ill and Mountney was being treated, we decided to get another source of money for me and Darren to live off._

_He'd had to go underground to ask about money and ended up talking to some East End people traffickers. Except in their job expertise, they took girls and women from Eastern Europe, North Africa and Asia._

_Girls from countries no one wants._

_So I decided what if we could reverse it? Sell children across Europe as servants? Or to childless couples? It would be huge. And we'd get money, to pay off hospital bills and debts._

_So we got at least five fake passports each and available vans to get across Europe. In Istanbul, that's where we take flights to Asia, Africa and South America._

_You do remember that across the world, there are rich people and poor people. They focus on poor people in rich countries, but there are rich people in poor countries. So it's no sweat for them._

_We've already taken forty children. So don't argue, or you're dead._

At Ashdene Ridge, Jody sat against the door, weeping.

She never cried normally, not after arriving, but now she just couldn't believe it. No one was coming. And she doubted anyone cared.

That must mean there was trouble. Mike wouldn't do this. He would never lock any of them in their rooms, especially not her, after her brother held her.

She knew something must be wrong. But she had no idea what.

And that was eating away at her.

Wilson and Kelly had arrived at their 'safe house', a barn in the middle of the French countryside. The hundred-year-old building was falling apart due to ruin, but inside some smugglers had converted the barn into a base.

As the huge doors slid shut behind them, the children looked anxiously round. Four tall man, two blonde, two dark-haired, one of them with long stubble, came forward.

One asked Mr Kelly, at the wheel, "Quels enfants?" Kelly answered, "La fille de la Méditerranée et la fille blanche."

At gunpoint, the man with the stubble gestured for Carmen and Tee, hands still behind them, to follow him.

Taking them to a sectioned off part of the barn, the man sat them down on two chairs. Turning a desk lamp on, the two frightened girls saw this was a salon. Black-and-white tiles on the floor, two full-size mirrors on a table opposite them, a small purple box by the edge, a small fluffy pink rug under them.

The man put the gun down by him and got a pair of scissors out. Tee's eyes widened as he drew closer to her. But before she screamed, he cut the ties on her hands.

"Sorry, mademoiselles," he apologised, "but you will really look good when I am done." He leaned across to Carmen and cut her ties.

Then he leant down between them, his head blocking their view. "Magazine? I am afraid the only one I have in English is a car magazine."

Carmen stammered, barely able to talk, "I'm fine, thanks."

Then the man opened the purple box.

At the minibus, the nearest blonde man was dragging Tyler off to another section. He turned a dim ceiling light on and gestured to a wicker chair.

Tyler blinked in the light and stared. A normal-looking desk with some cardboard boxes on it. Also, a few bottles of liquid on the desk, with a hairbrush and straighteners.

"I have to make you over," the man said in such a heavy accent that Tyler could barely understand what he was saying, "as your new pro…proprietors will want a smart child. You look like urchin."

Tyler argued, not too loudly, "Hey, I don't want this."

The man gestured his arms out, sighed, and then put Tyler in the chair. "I do not like being with criminals. But I have no job, so…"

Then he got a bottle and then smeared shampoo out into a china bowl, before putting a sheet round his chair. Tyler's curls were instantly wet, then coated in shampoo, before the man dried them completely, brushed them and as he held the comb out far, used the thin scissors to cut it.

The girls were now slightly worried. The purple box had been opened and inside was all sorts of powders, hair dyes and hairdressing equipment.

The man held the ends of Carmen's hair and measured how far it reached. "Quite a bit far. If someone wants a servant, in the past and even today, they often like short hair on them. But I think your buyer would actually like quite a long style, so only a few inches, make you look smart."

Then he looked through the assortment of hair dye bottles, pulling them out. Blonde, red, black, brown, light brown, sandy brown, salt and pepper. He examined Tee, putting his head on one side and half-closing an eye.

Then he put her head over a plastic tub and put on gloves. He still had the gun resting right beside him, so they were too afraid to move. He poured black liquid over Tee's head, then massaged her head.

Then he pulled her head up, took his gloves off and told her, "It will be wet for ten minutes. Do not touch."

Then he focused on Carmen. "You see, the thing about taking a…what are you?"

"Spanish." Carmen answered.

"Spanish girl near Greece is that there really isn't much of a difference. Oops, that sounds wrong – err, you look like any Greek girl who's been out in the sun. For days. Oh, great…"

Then he sighed loudly and told her, "Just be grateful you didn't end up in a worse country."

Then he looked through what he had. "OK, you need a bit of a wash, but Emma can help you, I can file those nails and add polish if you want."  
Carmen, a bit unnerved by the man's generosity, mumbled, "No, thanks."

"Right," he muttered, "so, what are you going to do now?"

The blonde man with Tyler had now cut his curls much shorter, his bouncy look completely gone. Now he was selecting the nearby boxes, looking through.

He got out some red trousers and a grey top, looking at them properly. "A good employee dresses to please. The same is said for a new hire."

He then looked Tyler up and down, took his trainers off, to Tyler's annoyance, and took in the size.

After ten minutes of endless French music, the stubbly man turned the CD off and then looked at Tee's hair.

"Absolutely perfect," he remarked, "suits you."

Then he got his scissors and black locks came floating down.

Now she had hair just below her shoulders, wet and startling.

The stubbly man then got out a cardboard box, leafing through. He then got two pairs of pumps, one blue, one lilac, as well as matching socks and headbands. He also gave over a long-sleeved purple top and a medium purple skirt and trousers together. The last thing he took was a long blue dress, knee-length, with blue tights.

When the girls got back to the bus, they noticed Faith had gone.

The other blonde man had taken faith to another room, where a thin woman with short black hair and suit began measuring her. Her waist, her height, told her to get on scales, before taking a picture of her.

Startled, Faith asked, "What's this for?" she was feeling extremely uncomfortable and didn't know how to react. The woman told her, "Well, you need looking pretty. Anyway, you need a bath. Just in case. You look exhausted, anyway. Not surprising, they made you come out in your pyjamas. But just get in the hot water and I'll leave you alone."

Half an hour later, the petrol had been filled, Mr Kelly had handed over wads of pound notes to the men and Emma, and had driven off.

At Ashdene Ridge, Mike woke up. The last thing he'd seen was Mr McLaughlin holding a gun and attacking him. Now his head really hurt, he was too weak to move and he could hear heavy footsteps.

He sat up slowly, groaning, felt his head. Very little blood, he didn't think his head had cracked. Even so, he needed a doctor. And the police.

Then a thought struck him. Where were the children? There was just complete silence. Then he saw Mr McLaughlin walking past the door. Mike looked up at the ceiling, in case the man looked.

Then he heard a voice. Johnny.

"Listen, what do you want with us? Where's Tee?"

"Kid, you're never seeing your sister again. She's gone to Japan."

Silence. Then Mike heard Johnny roar, then shouting. A scuffle. Mike _had_ to get up.

He quickly stood up, trying not to get on the blood on the floor and lunged towards Mr McLaughlin. The criminal was so startled, he nearly let go of the headlock Johnny was in. then Mike pushed him up against the wall, holding his shirt.

"Where have you taken the kids?"  
"Only six of them…"  
"Where!"

Mr McLaughlin gasped for breath, before telling him, "Over the world. We've taken kids before, Milligan. And I severely doubt that you'll ever see them again. Or us. And believe me, we've killed."

Then he slipped his hand from his pocket, holding a gun, and pushed Mike onto the floor. He looked at Johnny. "Watch it, kid. Or else."

The train embarked at the Netherlands. Ms Wilson looked out and saw the customer. 41-year-old Peter Dam was waiting.

Ms Wilson grinned, approaching him.

"Money?" she asked. She smiled, then looked back at the train.

Inside, they were asleep. Carmen, Tee and Faith were asleep in the carriage with her, firmly making sure that she had their passports in her bag, Bailey, Tyler and Frank were with Mr Kelly, who had their passports as well.

Ms Wilson walked to Mr Kelly's carriage, tapped the glass door, and gestured to the customer waiting outside on the lonely platform.

Mr Kelly stood up, pulled out one of the three wheelchairs in a cover bag underneath the seat, heaved Bailey from his seat, the heavy boy almost crashing to the ground, and sat him in the chair.

Pushing him out, Mr Kelly was handed an envelope by the Belgian customer. "£15,000?" Mr Kelly asked.

"Well, the equivalent in euros. But yes."

Then Ms Wilson and Mr Kelly went back on board, looking right back at the children.

This was just so easy.

At Ashdene Ridge, Mike, bruised and exhausted, lay on the floor while Mr McLaughlin was in the office.

Johnny had been locked upstairs again and Mike was getting sleepy.

He knew that if he went to sleep, he may never wake up, so he just carried on thinking.

Frank. Faith. Tee. Tyler. Carmen. Bailey.

They needed him, wherever they'd gone.

And now, when he looked at a shoulder bag that had been dumped on the floor by the stairs, with papers flowing out, he crawled over.

He saw lots of pictures of several different buildings. Including Ashdene Ridge. And menus in different languages. Greek and some Asian languages.

Plane tickets, for adults and children, to Bangkok, Lima, Havana, Cape Town.

And the children's passports.

He know seriously knew the children needed help.

**A/N: I really hope you like it, and, of course, reviews are always appreciated. By the way, what makes Cathy's story creepier is it's slightly based on a real story from 2008, though I can't remember the details. I do know that the two were arrested days after the murder.**

**By the way, the next few chapters are going to be a bit scarier, but unfortunately, this is realistic. And what Cathy said is right. Women from poor countries **_**are**_** being taken in horrible ways, and this story is slightly based on that.**

**Anyway, thank you for reading, and if you like it, you can favourite or review.**


	3. Chapter 3

Service

Ms Wilson had handed Frank over in Zurich and Tyler over in Rome. She had felt exhausted, this train journey just annoying her.

She spent the night with a thriller novel or watching a DVD. It was Swiss, but had subtitles.

She had the girls in her section, little Theresa in the top bunk, asleep, Faith lying on her stomach on the bottom bunk. Opposite, Carmen lay in the top bunk. Ms Wilson had appeared to the few rail staff that came by with meals as a caring guardian. If only they knew the truth.

But by morning, they'd arrived in Athens.

Mr Kelly came in as Ms Wilson put her sunhat on and a halter and sandals on, looking like any tourist. "Well Cathy?"

She smirked. "Fine really. Last stop until Istanbul. It's there I'm worried about. All the previous flights were done at British airports."

But he sat down by her as she smothered herself in cream. "Cathy, you know we've waited too long for this to get scared. If you appear scared, they'll know something's wrong."

She nearly laughed in denial. "Yes, but two girls, both of whom look nothing like us, scared and shaking in an international airport? They have much stricter rules here than the UK. They'll know something's wrong."

He raised an eyebrow. "Cathy, we're putting them in wheelchairs, remember? We'll look like hospital staff taking two unfortunate children to a holiday in Asia."

She groaned. "I just hope you're right. I mean, last time we took a girl to China, she bit me and tried to escape the flight." She didn't want to go through _that_ again.

But Mr Kelly told her, "Hey, time to get the girl going."

When they'd come on the platform, they let all the hoity tourists get off mainly first, before Ms Wilson started pushing out Carmen in a wheelchair.

The man she went up to was a 32-year-old Greek hotel manager in a white suit and styled hair. The only noise between them was Cathy's shoes clacking on the platform and the tiny squeak of the wheels. The man looked at Carmen, her eyes slowly blinking in the Greek sun.

"Thank you for this," he remarked, grinning in earnest, "I waited too long. What's her name?"

"Carmen." Mr Kelly answered.

"Pretty name. well, the car's down the platform, how do I get her down?"  
Ms Wilson answered, "I think there's a ramp." He grinned at her, handing the envelope of cash over, before the train whistled and the two went back on.

The Greek wheeled Carmen down the nearby ramp to his car, where his employee was waiting. "Anywhere else, sir?" he asked, as he lifted the girl inside and did her seatbelt.

"No, not now," his boss remarked, "although I would like a hot dog when I get back."

When Carmen was in the ride, her vision just got better. She could see blurred things outside the window and felt dizzy.

Before long, she heard the waves and looked out the window. The sun glared in her eyes but the car turned a corner and she saw white sand.

She looked to her right and saw the man next to her, reading a newspaper. "Ah, you're awake."

Carmen demanded, frightened and stubborn, "Where is this?!"

He laughed softly. "Carmen, let me introduce myself. I am Nikolas, and this is Greece. I am actually quite busy at the moment, the tourist season coming up, but when we get to the villa, we can be happy."

She raised an eyebrow. "Listen, I don't know what you want, but I am seriously demanding the police."

He then sighed and told her, "When you're busy, you find it very hard to have proper relationships. You get bills, moaning employees saying there isn't enough money or food or liquid. You get the financial issues, though I've been barely affected. But when I heard about this from some ex-cons who work in the ice cream kitchen, I just knew it was the chance."

Carmen raised an eyebrow. "What did Mr Kelly and Ms Wilson say?"

He giggled, slowly. "Those two have tried for years to marry in a hot country. And romantic Cathy – silly airhead – had got most of the ideas from the fact that no-one loved her in care and thought girls like her might think the same way."

Carmen's eyes grew wide and she was horrified. "You…"

"The youngest age to get married in Greece is 14."

She felt dreadful. "I…I'm just a kid! They seriously snatch girls so they can marry them off!"  
"They told us they only do that if the girl is old enough. The older boys they snatch for servants, the younger girls and boys for childless couples and rich, lazy people. But the young ladies, they are a catch."

She shouted, "I am _not_ marrying you! I haven't even finished school!"

"If I remember correctly," he told her, "girls your age in Britain are mothers. And a few sixteen and seventeen-year-olds are engaged or married."

Then he saw how scared she was. "Do not worry, Carmen, I'm going to wait for you. But the thing is, I brought you. And believe me, many men are much worse to their wives. I won't hit you. There are women from communist countries and poor countries that accept a journey to the UK or France or the Netherlands or America for little money and if some rich man in the business decides to marry them, they end up in the most miserable marriages. Same with mail-order brides from Russia and China. Face it, Carmen, you could be worse."

They'd already arrived at a group of villas surrounded by white brick walls. The driver spoke in Greek to a man at the gate and they drove through to a small hill with a white wall round it. The wooden gate opened, showing a small tiled courtyard, a wooden swing with cushions on, and a table with a green and silver striped tablecloth.

Carmen raised her eyebrow. This was a very confusing meeting.

The plane took off from Istanbul at midday. Mr Kelly and Ms Wilson had the front few rows of the plane to themselves, as they weren't used.

Faith was just waking up, sitting in the seat by the window, with Mr Kelly next to her, reading a magazine. Ms Wilson was in the next row, with Tee by the window, having just woken up, but really scared.

She looked over at Ms Wilson, who was flipping through a magazine. "Ms Wilson, where am I going?" she whimpered. Tee knew that she was going far away. She didn't care what happened, just as long as she'd be able to get away and see Johnny again.

"Japan," Ms Wilson answered, not even looking at the girl, "for $15,000. Well, the equivalent in yen, but that much."

Tee mumbled, "How many have you taken?"

Ms Wilson opened her shoulder bag and leafed through her booklet. "Before you, forty. I've had about twelve teenage girls. Two to Rwanda, one to South Africa, one to Spain, one to Greece, two to Turkey, one to China, two to Japan and two to Cuba. Aged thirteen to sixteen, depending on ages in countries."  
Tee was confused, before Ms Wilson showed her a picture of a Japanese woman in a wedding dress. "You'll be a perfect bride."

Mike had fallen unconscious again. Jody and Floss were in Carmen's room, with Mr McLaughlin opening the door.

"Now girls," he said briefly, "I just want to know your ages. I won't be a minute."

The girls looked at each other before answering. "Thirteen." "Seven."

Mr McLaughlin wrote this down before checking notes. "right, someone's asking for a girl aged six to ten in Peru and someone's asking for a girl aged ten to thirteen in South Africa. You two would be perfect, so get ready."  
Jody demanded, "What do you mean? You're sending us abroad!"  
Mr McLaughlin smiled. "Tomorrow, Mr Kelly and Ms Wilson will be back and they're taking all of you to other countries. And we're getting money. And guess what? When we've finished with you, Kelly and Wilson will have enough money to get married! I just hang around."

In the office later, Mr McLaughlin had the file photos of the six remaining children, as well as addresses in Cuba, Peru and South Africa. A man in Cuba had asked for a boy (they selected from four groups; four to six, six to ten, ten to thirteen and thirteen and over) over thirteen to be his servant, a couple in Peru had asked for a boy over thirteen to be their slave, someone in South Africa had asked for a girl aged ten to thirteen for housework, a family in Peru had asked for a younger girl as an adoptive child, a man in South Africa had asked for a boy aged ten to thirteen as his servant, and a couple in Cuba had asked for a boy aged six to ten to be their child.

He settled down and wondered. Where would he go after this? That silly young couple were going to the Caribbean and having their new life there, in a villa near city suburbs, but where would he go? He was older, ill and had slight mental problems. He couldn't go back to his old job.

Then he began to smile, evilly.


	4. Chapter 4

Wedding

The plane landed in China and then Ms Wilson grabbed Faith's arm as she led her out the plane to the luggage carousel below. "Just shut up and do what I say."

Faith looked at her, nervous.

"What can I do? Nobody here speaks English." Ms Wilson grinned at her. "Just be good, little pest."

Then she had her passport and Faith's faked passport checked by customs, though how she got away with it Faith had no idea, before she walked down to the luggage carousel.

Chinese and tourists alike, after a satisfying holiday in Turkey, took the luggage as it came round. A tall Chinese man about thirty-five came up to Ms Wilson.

"这个女孩"the man asked. Ms Wilson nodded. Faith asked, "What did he mean?"

Ms Wilson rolled her eyes before saying, "He was asking 'is this the girl'?"

The man grinned an evil smile and asked, in English, "How old is she?"

"She is sixteen." Ms Wilson answered.

The man then clutched Faith. "Little lady, I am awful. Just remember, I have way."

He patted his coat pocket and Faith felt uncomfortable. But she looked behind her as Ms Wilson went back to the terminal and she was stuck with this man.

He introduced himself as they walked to a taxicab outside. "My name is Jinsong. And this is Beijing. Look around, girl. You'll get used to it."

As he lit a cigarette he offered one.

She asked, "Should I take that?"

Faith was really confused and had no idea what she should do. He smiled, putting it back. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Faith."

"Ideal name, girl. Because you have it."

Then he said, "The ceremony's tomorrow morning. Don't worry about anything, there are a few people here who can really sort you out. And you'll look pretty."  
"Ceremony?" Faith quivered.

"Faith, you are going to be my wife."

Faith's eyes grew wide and she swallowed. "I'm just sixteen. And I haven't finished my education…"

He snarled at her. "Girl, you're mine. And be grateful I'm actually going to allow you to be outside the house because if you don't co-operate, there are a _lot_ of things I could do."

At Ashdene Ridge, Johnny kept looking at the window in Frank's room. He and Harry had been locked up for over thirty-six hours and they were beginning to feel annoyed. All he knew was that Tee was somewhere else and he was going to be sold.

Like a pet. Like a slave. Was he a slave? They were ready to get him.

And he knew that unless the abductors had saved evidence, he'd never see Tee again.

He tried hard not to cry when he thought about it. But he was struggling to see how he could escape.

He knew that in a few hours, Mr McLaughlin would drug them and send them off to whatever country they had lined up.

Johnny imagined himself being brought by some Spanish or Chinese or African person, being dragged off to whatever they wanted them for, never seeing Tee again.

No. He couldn't! He had to be focused.

He looked over at Harry, curled up on the bed. Going over and kneeling down, he asked, "Harry, could you just hide in that cupboard for me a sec?"

The little boy asked, "Why?"  
"Just do it, Harry. If you do, we might save the others."

In Japan, the plane began touching down as Tee quivered in her seat. Her friends had gone, she was the last one left, and she was scared about what Ms Wilson had said. She'd be a bride.

She was only fourteen! And even though Ms Wilson had told her girls could marry at thirteen in Japan, she still felt uncomfortable.

When the plane touched the ground, Mr Kelly was the one who took Tee out by the hand. After getting their faked passports checked by security, who Tee didn't think were really looking properly, Mr Kelly took her out to the luggage carousel.

Tee didn't know why, maybe Ms Wilson was a bit tired, but being with Mr Kelly was slightly scarier.

Looking round, she saw she was at the luggage carousel. She noticed a young Japanese man in a black suit waiting by the metal seats.

Mr Kelly went up and asked, "Are you Kaede?" the man nodded.

"How old is this girl?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. Tee was surprised how he spoke with an English accent.

"Theresa is fourteen years, seven months." Mr Kelly rattled off.

Kaede briskly told her, "The car is outside, Theresa." He pronounced her name wrong. He said 'f-ree'.

In the car outside, even with things inside to try and calm her, like a small bunch of cherry blossom flowers and a pink cushion, Tee felt terrified.

She really didn't care much about what would happen to her. She just wanted Johnny.

Kaede then told Tee about himself. He was only twice her age, with a job as the manager of a company.

"In Japan, children are encouraged to work a lot. Even really young children get a lot of homework. We see hard-working children as a good thing. Of course, at fourteen, you need some schoolwork left to do, I could sort that out, but remember that I brought you for £15,000, or more accurately, over two and a half million yen, which is quite a bit, as a bride."

Tee murmured, "But I'm still a kid."

Kaede kindly told her, "You do understand that you have very bad problems here if you don't. Although a lot of Japanese people speak English, very few will know enough to understand your situation. And I won't throw you out on the streets; I'll just place you in the offices where everything is in Japanese. And you'll have to sleep in the building."

Tee seemed to think she hadn't a choice, so she sighed and answered tiredly, "When's the wedding?"

"A few days. I just have to get the right stuff. Some Japanese weddings are _Shinto_, but a number use churches. As you are British, although I don't know religion, we can have the church."

They arrived at a building with a tall brick wall and barbed wire round the top. The gates opened and then the car went past a few trees and benches on the drive, parking outside the stairs.

Kaede ushered Tee up the stairs and pressed a button in the door. He asked something quickly in Japanese and then the door opened.

Tee was amazed at inside. Aside from the sliding paper doors, it could have been in Britain. The carpets, pictures, the colours, it didn't look Asian.

It looked British. Some of the paintings were copies of English paintings.

Kaede told her, "I have a fascination with the British. It was from some Brits I heard about the smugglers, to be frank, from some British businessman doing an exchange. They said they'd heard from some East End criminals they'd met about this bride thing."

Tee then looked round. "Where's my room?"

Kaede slid a paper door open and Tee saw a _very_ Japanese room. A mattress on wooden bed, colourful duvet, a small bedside cabinet with a Buddha statue and a few photographs of Japanese countryside.

Smoky glass wardrobe doors and a table next to the bed, a folding table.

Kaede asked, "Theresa, is there anything you would want?"

Tee paused. Aside from wanting Johnny, she couldn't think of anything. "Err, I prefer Tee." She looked him straight in the eye, hoping he'd do something.

He smiled, nodding. "I understand."

In Ashdene Ridge, Mr McLaughlin opened the door to Frank's room. He was going to drug the boys and get the bus drive to the airport, where Kelly and Wilson would take over.

Silly little kids, he thought. Kelly and Wilson (he was used to calling them fake names, it was Darren Robinson and Cathy Wilson) were just so childish. It was amazing to think they were already grown up. Cathy still looked about sixteen.

She didn't even wear make-up, one of the few good things about her. She constantly giggled and the two often kissed when they didn't think McLaughlin was around.

He was a bit relieved they were flying with £600,000 from the kidnappings to the Caribbean. Well, £579,080 after tickets. He'd also done their hard work for them, finding a visa and a hotel to work at. They could get their stupid wedding done on a garbage beach for all _he_ cared.

Five years of putting up with their ideas, bunking at _his_ house, watching DVDs and he let them in because they'd committed a crime.

And now, although he found the kidnappings fun, he'd had to buy every ticket himself.

When he opened the door, syringes in hand, he was ready to grab the two boys.

But when he opened the door, he saw the room was empty. His heart skipped a beat and then he waited, looking behind the door.

The boys would possibly still be in here. It was a trick. He'd check the wardrobe first.

When he opened the door he saw tiny Harry behind the clothes. "Gotcha!" he grimaced, leaning forward.

Johnny jumped from under the bed and grabbed the duvet, throwing it over McLaughlin. McLaughlin screamed words that a boy Harry's age should never hear, as Johnny shouted, wrenching the keys from McLaughlin's hand, "Get the police!"

Harry scrambled outside and pattered to where Rick and Mo were. Unlocking the door, Rick opened it, looking at Harry then back at Frank's room. "What's going on?"

"We're escaping." Harry plainly answered. Rick bounded, Mo in tow, out of the bedroom and ran down the stairs to the office.

As McLaughlin carried on screaming, Harry unlocked Carmen's room. As Jody and Floss came to the door, McLaughlin came out from Frank's room. He'd thrown Johnny to the floor and rushed out, red.

As Floss screamed, running downstairs, McLaughlin grabbed Harry by the arms and hauled him up, "You worthless piece of…" he began shouting, before Johnny came up behind him and hit him with the football.

Rick had seen Mike on the floor, still bleeding, but tried to ignore what he thought was a corpse, and ran into the office, locking it behind him.

He had no idea what to do, so he called first the police, stuttering through.

He didn't think they'd heard properly what he said, but McLaughlin's shouting and Harry and Jody screaming, as well as the football then flying through the hall and smashing the office window, probably made the operator think something awful was happening, so they told Rick a police car and ambulance would come straight away.

Then for no idea why, Rick called May-Li's number.

"Yes Rick?" she asked, when she heard his voice. "You do know this is Mike's phone?"

"I think Mike's dead." Rick gasped, as McLaughlin began pulling on the office door. "Dead?!"

"Let me in, you…" Rick tried blocking out what McLaughlin was screaming, "Stupid brat! I'll knock your…" May-Li asked, "Who is that?"  
Rick swallowed, "I think he killed Mike."

When the police car and ambulance arrived, McLaughlin was already trying to get away in the minibus, with two very confused Poles who'd come for loading, and promptly arrested him.

They'd found Rick and Mo in the office, as well as Johnny, Jody and Harry in Carmen's room. Johnny had a red cheek and a black eye on his right side, where Jody said McLaughlin had slapped him. Floss was under the stairs.

The ambulance people said that Mike, although he'd been losing blood, had shut his body down, rendering him comatose for at least twenty-four hours. The ambulance people said that if he hadn't come when he had, he may have died.

But the police had a big problem. They had six missing kids on their hands.

The officer soon got the children and May-Li in the den, and after a few hours, had them ready.

They were exhausted, confused and bewildered.

"Children," the officer began, "over the last several months, forty children, in all care homes, have been kidnapped by unknown people, always two men and a woman. They'd pretend to be social workers, had all the documents, they also killed the care workers.

"Mr Milligan was very lucky. We had no idea where the children went and we feared the worst, but after confiscating airline tickets and a continent-crossing brochure, we believe that the children were taken to several different countries.

"The train starts in Paris and ends in Istanbul, in Turkey. The stops are Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Greece. Then we believe, as a booklet from McLaughlin says, they fly from an airport in Turkey to Africa and Asia. Airline tickets we found mean that they planned to take you six to Latin America and South America.

"We will check all the countries and the foreign airlines with ambassadors to see where the others could be, it may take some time, but I am certain that we can get them back."

As Mr Kelly and Ms Wilson landed at Gatwick, the police arrested them.

Within an hour they'd identified Kelly and Wilson, and noticed that 'Kelly's' mother had gone missing in 2009. They were certain if they searched a nearby area, they'd find her body.

They found evidence from the Turkish airport that over several months, the two had flown to Rwanda, South Africa, China, Thailand and Japan from that airport. Sometimes they'd also get off between stops and come back on.

Every time they had been accompanied by children.

Twenty-four hours after the arrest, the news was on television stations all over the world. Britain, Netherlands, Italy, Greece, China, Japan, Australia, America, Cuba, Peru. Everywhere.

Peter Mountney, 48, Darren Robinson, 27, and Cathy Wilson, 21, had their photos shown on every news site in the world, in thirty-nine different languages, with links to the forty-six missing children's pictures, when they disappeared, and which countries they may be in.

Johnny looked at the page with Tee, of her in school uniform, smiling, taken last Christmas. Below it read,

_Theresa Taylor, 14, Ashdene Ridge, last seen 25__th__ April. Believed to be in China or Japan. May have her hair cut and/or dyed._

He just stared at her. He wanted her home.

**A/N: Thanks to judopixie for all your help.**


	5. Chapter 5

I Do

Carmen looked across at the white sands from the villa.

After two days, she was nervous. It was her wedding day, a day she dreaded. She wore a white wedding dress, rather thin, with an orange sash round her waist. Her hair had been plaited and a woman had put pink eye shadow on her, a very light pink, as 'park pink makes you look stupid'.

She also had white pumps on, with straps round her ankle. She'd been given blue flowers to hold and a blue comb placed in her hair with a blue flower, as well as a veil.

But she felt like bursting into tears.

Then a woman came in. Carmen had seen these people round the villa regularly. They were employees at the resort, some didn't even know Carmen was kidnapped, and only a few spoke English.

"You look lovely." She drawled, as she held out her arm for Carmen. Carmen followed her out to the paved path, where the trail led to the sand and rows of deckchairs, mostly of employees, sat.

"I…can't understand Greek. What if I don't know the vows?" Carmen mumbled.

The woman briskly told her, "Yours are done in English, and be happy. A hotelier nearby had a bride from…" she paused, thinking, "Cambodia, and he was absolutely dreadful. She wasn't much older than you."

Carmen thought back to what Cathy had said about men sometimes taking illegal immigrant women and treating them badly. At least Nikolas seemed to want to make her happy.

On the beach, there was Nikolas, in a smart white suit, standing near a priest. Carmen looked up at Nikolas as she stood by him.

"Don't worry," he told her, "your vows are in English."

He held his hand out for Carmen and she took it. "This is Orthodox Christian," he told her quickly, "just follow what the priest tells you."

The priest then shouted something in Greek joyfully, before two rings were held on a cushion. He said something in Greek, moving his hands over them.

He then slid one of the rings onto Nikolas' right hand, before taking Carmen's, making her slightly jolt, doing the same. Then he put part of his robe over Nikolas and Carmen's arms, saying something in Greek.

Carmen just looked round, worried. To anyone who didn't know, she looked like a weary young bride. Not a frightened girl.

Then the priest looked at Carmen and spoke. "You are in the Orthodox Church united in one mind and wed in one flesh."

He must have memorised it, because it didn't sound as if he knew English.

He then gave them from an altar that Carmen hadn't noticed – possibly a light one, since it was taken to the beach – two candles, both lit. Again, Carmen supposed it may be part of how the service worked.

Then he held from the altar two small crowns, joined by a ribbon, and did the Orthodox cross on them. Carmen just closed her eyes and thought, _Please, get this over with._

Then she felt a nudge and looked down at a cup. Nikolas then handed it to her and she lifted it to her lips, drinking.

The priest read something in Greek, before Nikolas and Carmen, hand-in-hand, followed him three times round the altar.

Then everyone began clapping and Carmen knew the ceremony was over.

She was legally married to Nikolas.

Over in China, it was nearly evening. A man slid open the door to her room and turned the light on. Faith tried to shield herself from the light but he dragged her up.

Faith was dressed quickly in a red lace _cheongsam_ with a sweep train and forced a red bead bracelet on. Her hair was put in a ponytail and twisted, held with a large pin.

A pair of red pumps were forced on her feet and he clipped red long earrings to her ears.

He then ushered her outside. It was open-air, lots of rows of seats down both sides. The bridal carpet was bright red, around them hung Chinese lanterns.

At the end of the gardens, Jinsong was waiting, in a black suit, stern and impatient. Faith quivered as she felt herself dragged along.

When Faith reached the end, the priest asked something in Chinese to Jinsong, and he hastily answered. Faith knew he was saying, "I do."

Then the man asked Faith, "Do you take Chow Jinsong to be your lawfully wedded husband?" Inside, Faith was screaming, "No!" but she then looked up and answered shakily, "I do."

She felt her mouth on fire. Then the priest handed one end of a red ribbon to Jinsong, then went over to Faith, holding the other end. He widened his eyes and then Faith took the end.

As they went to the carpet, Jinsong briskly told Faith, "We bow. Four times. Once for Heaven and Earth, once for ancestors, once for parents and once for spouse."

Then Jinsong bowed four times, rather quickly. Shaking, faith copied him, trying to hold back tears. Then the priest handed them cups.

Jinsong told Faith, "These are nuptial cups. We drink."

After they had, the priest shouted something and then everybody began clapping. Faith didn't want to look. She was legally bound to this horrible man and she felt like her world had fallen apart.

Jinsong then took two rings off a red cushion and shoved one on Faith's finger before putting one on his own. He held his arm in Faith's, and smiling, addressed the audience, telling them something in Chinese which made a few laugh.

Then he began hauling Faith back to the house, as the guests began going in a separate room, filled with light.

When he'd taken Faith up the stairs and into his room, where a double bed with a sky blue duvet sat, he told her, "Faith, you are mine. Personally, I wouldn't have wanted a…" he paused, looking her up and down, "but you are rather pretty. As you may know, women in China are hardly listened to. The husband makes the money, the wife stays at home."

Then Faith asked, "What do I do here?"

"Well, in China and even some surrounding countries, young girls and women are kidnapped from their homes for Chinese men, a consequence of the one-child policy. The difference with you is you didn't come from Asia. As this is quite a well-off household, you won't have to work all day. You just look pretty."

He smiled. "Another thing is that you will be addressed as Chow Faith by any of my business associates when they come over at any time. A good wife is a good hostess. You Brit teens are quite famous for having loud parties with police coming, so try to not say anything much at the table. Won't be hard, they speak Chinese."

Then Faith asked, "What about the day?"

"Sit in the garden, look pretty. Learn enough Chinese to make sure the servants can do the good recipes and clean the house."

Jinsong smiled at her. "Pretty little thing, aren't you?" then he told her, "There's also one more thing I need to tell you that every wife does…"

In Japan, the morning sun shone into Tee's room. She blinked, rubbing her eye and then looked to the wardrobe. It was a yellow kimono with blue and red flower patterns over it.

Then there was a knock at the door. There was a maid there, only a decade older than Tee. "Fukui-_san_ told me to help you dress."

"Fukui-_san_?" Tee asked.

"Kaede. Fukui is his surname and it will be your surname."

The woman then did Tee's hair in a bun and added a long plastic pin. Then she helped Tee put the kimono on and tie the belt round the waist. It was really long and Tee kept getting her arms caught in the fabric put the woman then helped pull her sleeves through.

As Tee and the woman went out to the car, Tee asked, "Where's Kaede?"

"He is already at the hotel where the wedding is."

Tee then stammered, "I can't do this, I'm fourteen! I still go to school, I won't understand the vows! I'm only little!"

When they'd got in the car, the woman told her, "You will be a good wife. Don't little girls like planning their weddings?"  
_Not like this_, Tee thought.

When they got to the hotel, the woman ushered Tee past the entrance and through the hall, where quite a number of people were talking. Some looked over at her and whispered.

_I guess I look older than fourteen,_ Tee thought.

When she'd gone into the hotel chapel, she saw there was just a shrine, priest, Kaede and a few people she didn't know.

When Tee had gone down the aisle, the priest got out a card and read off.

"I am delighted to join Fukui Kaede and his bride Theresa in matrimony."  
He'd also pronounced her name wrong.

He then handed Kaede a cup, which Kaede drank from.

He then offered it to Tee, who raised her eyebrow. Then she drank from it.

After they exchanged rings and vows, Kaede took Tee's hand and walked her out to the hall. He then shouted something in Japanese and everyone clapped.

Kaede then told Tee, "We are officially married now. Don't worry, I'll make sure that you get schoolbooks sent over and you can finish your education by eighteen."

The guests all started going into a reception, which looked just like a British reception. Even some of the food was British.

Tee felt extremely uncomfortable, not knowing what Kaede would do or know any of the guests. She assumed though, that quite a number of them had to be business partners or worked for Kaede.

She sat on a white and gold plastic chair next to him as he raised a cup and then there was silence. He said a few things in Japanese before some people laughed and he sat down again.

Tee was mostly quiet throughout the wedding feast, just having meat dumplings, crab soup and some specially ordered chips. But just before pudding (chocolate, raspberry and vanilla mousse) arrived, a man in a suit near Kaede leaned over to look at her.

"Excuse me," he stammered, "but are you from Britain?"

She nodded.

"Well," he carried on, "it must be hard living so far away."

She smiled for the first time since she was kidnapped and answered, "you have no idea."

He carried on talking. "Everyone at the industry is very pleased with our boss' new arrival. In Japan, the company is treated as the family so when he said that a new girl was coming, we were delighted. He has taken a long time to find a pretty girl."

Tee asked, "How come you know English so well?"

"We are taught a lot from the minute we begin school. Plus, I went to university in Washington."

Tee just had no idea what her married life would be like. This was nothing how she'd expected. When she'd been little, she'd imagined she'd marry somebody who loved her, somebody she'd love as well.

But Kaede was twice her age, and although he did seem nice, she really didn't know what her future would be like.

In Britain, Mike and May-Li were attending a service by the police and locals. Where every child had disappeared at this moment, the local people were all lighting candles and standing outside the homes where they disappeared.

Their faces were plastered all over, happy, smiling faces.

Mike was still in plaster with some awful headaches and he hadn't looked in the mirror, but he stood with May-Li as the television cameras floated past the frames.

Frank. Tyler. Bailey. Carmen. Faith. Tee.

"Please," he said, close to tears, looking at the camera, "these people have – taken our livelihoods. These children – could be anywhere and we miss them, so much. I – don't know what sort people brought them – but we want them back."

In his room, Johnny looked out at the candles and television cameras. Behind him, Rick came in.

"I just want Tee," Johnny mumbled into his sleeve as Rick came up, "she's out there."

Rick just sat by him. "It's hard on me too, I lost Carmen. And the police are trying all they can. But I can just say we have to hope."

Johnny didn't want to think of his sister in some Asian country, terrified, frightened, anyone doing anything to her.

But he knew he wanted her.


	6. Chapter 6

Searching for Tee

It had been six weeks.

Johnny tried keeping up the usual routine; up, breakfast, school, back to Ashdene, eat, bath, go to bed, but what everyone didn't say, but always meant, was the absence of the other children.

But the police were always coming round to talk to Mike and May-Li and the missing children's rooms remained untouched.

But Johnny found it harder than any of the others.

He would go past her room every day, until it became too hard for him, and he was given the spare room, which Mike had when he stayed nights.

The cases of the missing British children had gone round the world. Over 250 tips were coming in from Western Europe alone.

Over £100,000 had been raised by different charities, some as far away as America and Australasia, in just six weeks. _The Telegraph_ had offered a £250,000 reward. The _Sun_ gave a £50,000 reward.

The faces shot out everywhere. Especially Tee's.

Now Mike had just turned off the TV again when their faces had come up, as Johnny came in. it had been a piece on 'missing pretty girl syndrome', otherwise known as 'missing white woman syndrome', saying that Tee was getting more attention that the other Ashdene residents because of her age, gender and race.

"Oh, hi Johnny," he said, as the boy came in, "can I do something?"

Johnny shook his head. He sat down and looked at the growing stack of newspapers on the table.

Mike leaned over and picked them up. "Rewards are ranging from £10,000 to a million. Over 400 sightings of Tee have come in from East Asia."

Johnny smiled a little bit, knowing it was helpful that so many cared, and it still broke him.

"I just want her." He murmured.

Mike leaned over and told him, "I know, they're trying their best…"

Johnny had had enough. He then stood up and raised his voice. "You _have_ to say that because you don't _know_! You have no idea where Tee is, or whatever pervert has her! She's fourteen! She can even look twelve! I miss her and she could be anywhere!"

He stormed up to the spare room, where he just buried his face in the pillow and tried hard not to cry. But it was so hard.

Mike had gone to the prison where Cathy was being held while the police were examining the abductions. Also, they were waiting for her trial in killing Mrs Robinson in 2008.

Six weeks seemed to have changed her. She looked a bit thinner, her hair wispy, not so bright and pretty, just plain exhausted.

She smiled at her, showing her yellow teeth. "Hello, Mr Milligan."

He frowned. He knew she was a care kid. He knew how to deal with kids like her; obnoxious, bad, misbehaved.

He drew breath.

"Cathy, I heard you were a care kid when you were younger."

She grunted. "I was. That's how I decided to get care kids. Because they'd be like me. Unhappy, looking for love. So that's what I did with the older girls."

Mike was trying not to scream at her. "What…you sent some of those girls to is _not_ love, do you understand! They're – children! For young women, trafficking affects them the worst."

"You want?"

"Cathy," he calmed himself, "I just need information. You may get a better sentence or better conditions. Prison – is a hard place for a woman, just as it is out there for all those girls you took. It's – just six children. Please."

She leaned back and then looked round. "All right," she told him, "I'll tell you. Though don't tell Darren I snitched, he'll be really cross. And I do love him. The kids you want are in these places…"

Mike returned to the officers.

"Well?"

"Cathy said that Frank's in Switzerland, Bailey's in the Netherlands, Tyler's in Italy, Carmen's in Greece, Faith's in China and Tee's in Japan, but she won't give the names of Carmen, Faith or Tee's buyers."

The officer made a disgusted noise. "Stupid woman; letting those girls suffer."

Mike suggested, "Alternatively, she could just be fantasizing what she wanted to do with Darren Robinson."

He then asked, "What about Mountney and Robinson?"

"Mountney's in secure facility. He refuses to say anything. Robinson's a moody young man, he keeps going on about how much he misses his mother and showed us where the body was. Pretty much it."

When Mike got back, he told May-Li, but he made her promise not to tell the residents in case of false hope.

But two days later, officers had turned up and they had some good news.

When they went in the office, one of them told Mike and May-Li, who were anxious and terrified, "We found Frank, Tyler and Bailey."

Mike seemed to skip a beat. May-Li looked overwhelmed.

"Where are they?" May-Li asked.

The second officer told them, "Tyler and Bailey are being examined by officials in Italy and the Netherlands. They seem roughly okay, though both are exhausted and scared."

Then Mike asked, not knowing if he wanted the answer, "And what about Frank?"

The officer looked down, not knowing how to say this.

But when he arrived back in Britain, the residents knew.

Frank had been brought by a Swiss resort owner. The sort that smoked and always thought himself above everyone else.

His name was Raphael Cavadini and he was in his early fifties and though thin, was tall and strong. He liked, according to records from Switzerland, taking control. He was also very loud and some employees were scared of him.

He'd wanted a personal slave. When he found out that Frank was, in his words 'a waste of money', he toyed with him.

He only gave instructions in French, made Frank walk long distances round the resort, carrying the heaviest items. He made him get up at six every morning to shine his shoes and pump his cushions, even though the manager didn't get up until eight-thirty.

He also made Frank clean the outside pool, in freezing temperatures. He often had hard nights, as it wasn't the season yet.

He had previously taken this out on lowly employees like the cleaners and janitors. Now, he took it out on Frank.

Cigarette burns, kicks everywhere, massive bruises, even broken bones, but the boy hadn't given in.

Raphael called Frank 'a waste' and said that he 'paid for a real slave, not a mumbled blond'. By the time six weeks had gone, Frank was even thinner, his skeleton showing, hair falling out, nails gone black from abuse, three broken ribs digging into his organs and was suffering from early second-hand smoke.

In fact, the broken ribs eventually killed him.

They'd dug into his kidneys, causing failure, especially with the second-hand smoke destroying him. He'd been told by Raphael that he had to clean all 351 rooms in the hotel and wash all four hundred windows, even the skylight. He hadn't given him any water and told him to get it himself.

Frank had gone to the skylight and his kidneys just gave up. He'd vomited blood and fell through the skylight.

That had caused the police to come, and when they'd found a dead boy matching the missing boy, they'd done a DNA test and arrested Raphael Cavadini.

When Mike read that, he'd just broken down.

This showed exactly how cruel the world was to these children and how much danger they were in.

Johnny sat in the spare room after hearing it.

Frank was dead.

And Tee, she could be anywhere. She could be married to someone as abusive as Cavadini. Tyler and Bailey were reasonably fine, thinner and tired, but at least they weren't abuse victims.

The world was cruel to people like Frank, and this man had brought him illegally and used him as a punch bag. All because he wasn't perfect.

Johnny felt anger now. Anger because Tee could be suffering and he wasn't there. He had to now. He _had_ to find her himself.


	7. Chapter 7

Asia

Johnny was walking along the platform of the Channel tunnel station. He'd soon be abroad and then he could find Tee.

He'd previously been listening in on a call to the police station.

_When the officers who'd delivered the news about Frank were leaving, one of them received a call on the landline._

_Johnny had picked up another phone and listened in._

_Cathy had said a bit more, about 'the pretty ones', that she'd sent abroad. She revealed which countries she sent them to._

_Two in Rwanda, one in South Africa, one in Spain, Carmen and another girl in Greece, two in Turkey, Faith and another girl in China, two in Cuba, Tee and another two girls in China._

_He'd then used Mike's credit card to order Japan tickets from an airport in Paris. He knew that it had been years since he'd seen Mike's credit card number, and this was illegal anyway, but he seemed to remember the number._

_Maybe that meant he should look for Tee._

He stepped on the train as it came in the station.

In Greece, Carmen was with Nikolas in the front reception. Tourist season was beginning and lots of people from all over the world were signing in.

Nikolas was playing the good manager, welcoming each of them in different languages, picking them up from a guidebook, in French, German, Chinese and English.

And Carmen played the pretty young wife, in a little white dress, a small bit of lipstick, her hair done in a twisted plait and white heels. She looked older than her age, maybe it was the point.

Yes, age of consent in Greece _was_ fourteen, but marriage was eighteen. How Nikolas had managed to get that through, she didn't know.

Not that they'd done anything.

If any of the guests asked, the employees – some knew, some didn't – told them, 'his little Spanish bride'.

Carmen just really didn't do much. When Nikolas took her to the main building, she just sat at the bar, reading or drinking what looked like an alcoholic drink but was really pomegranate and lemon.

Now Nikolas had brought one of his business partners, who owned a hotel in Cyprus.

"He has also brought his wife along," he told her as the black car came up, "and she's not much older than you."

A man and a woman came out of the car. The man was around Nikolas' age, maybe older, and wore a black suit unbuttoned, so that his shirt showed. The woman was only about five feet, very skinny, with long red wavy hair and freckles.

The woman pulled a red suitcase behind her on wheels, clacking on the tiled floor.

The man came up to Nikolas, shaking hands and talking happily in Greek. Nikolas then turned to Carmen, "This is Andreas. He has worked with me for over fifteen years. He can't speak English. And this is his bride Becky."

Becky put her hand out and shook Carmen's. She then asked something in Greek. Carmen raised an eyebrow. Becky tilted her head and then asked something in Spanish. Andreas leaned down to her and whispered something in Greek.

Becky then laughed slightly and asked in English, "How are you?"

Her accent sounded an odd mixture of Scottish and Greek.

"Fine." Carmen answered quietly.

Then Nikolas asked, "Why don't you ladies go to the employee lounge while we get lunch, huh?"

In the employee lounge (with red sofas, Greek magazines and a couple of trivia books), Carmen asked Becky, "How old are you?"

"Nearly seventeen."

Carmen's eyes widened. "I thought you were twenty."

Becky shrugged. "Partly the point. How old are you?"

"Fifteen."

Becky looked surprised. "Well, I guess it's…where we come from."

Carmen asked, "Were you taken too?"

Becky nodded. "Aberdeen. I was sixteen and almost ready to go. I wasn't looking forward to it. A job in some dead-end shop."

_I was taken eleven months ago. Those three had just arrived. They called themselves Louise Robinson and Pat Taylor then. They were with us just under a month, so I guess they arrived a year ago._

_There were eleven of us. Me, Chloe, 12, Callum, 12, Charlotte, 13, Rhys, 11, Molly, 11, Jessica, 9, Bradley, 8, Oscar, 7, Amelie, 6, and Megan, 6. I miss them._

_We had some food at the table and before I knew it, I was in the minibus in France. They took me and Charlotte to a separate room and they dyed my hair black and straightened it, though it came out now. They cut Charlotte's hair to a pixie and dyed it blonde. I can tell she didn't like it. We had Callum, Molly, Jessica and Bradley with us on the bus. They were all crying,._

_We stopped off on the train in Germany and Italy and Molly and Bradley were sold. I hope they're alive._

_They told us that Charlotte and I were worth everything and men wanted to marry us. They were selling Charlotte in Thailand but I don't know what happened to her._

Becky found it hard to stop crying but she managed.

"I just…miss them so much but I know that – Andreas is quite a good man and he hasn't hurt me – and I just hope the others will – be found."

Then she picked up a newspaper and looked at the headline. Carmen asked, "What is it?"

"They caught the guys who took us six weeks ago, I remember that bit. But it says here that three children have been found."

Carmen looked over. "That's my care home!" she cried.

Becky read it.

"It says that three boys from your care home were found. Three teens. Do you know who they could be?"

Carmen thought. "Frank was seventeen, he had cerebral palsy, Tyler, I guess is not in his teens yet, but he could be close or they could group them together, and Bailey's fourteen."

Becky read on. "It says that 'a 12-year-old boy and a 14-year-old boy have been recovered alive'."

Carmen froze. "And the third?"

"It says he was found dead. They can't say the cause."

Carmen leaned back. Becky put the newspaper down and put her arm round the younger girl. "I know it's hard, but everything will be fine."  
Carmen then said, through tears, "I knew Frank for five years. I grew up with him. He was great. How could he…just die?"

Becky reassured her, "Listen, _we_ won't have to go through that abuse."

The girls didn't take in that Becky was really suffering. She'd been brainwashed, believing that because Andreas hadn't killed her, she should be grateful to him.

And now Carmen was suffering too.

Johnny was now on the flight to Japan. He knew that Tee was in Japan, he just didn't know where. He might even be on the wrong island.

Cathy had given few clues to the police, purposing allowing time for the crimes to be covered up.

She was a sort of psychopath, Johnny thought. Not even allowing hope for the carers and loved ones of the victims by refusing to reveal exact names and addresses.

But he knew even if he had to sleep on the streets of Japan, he would find Tee.

Cathy was grinning non-stop. When every officer came in, she'd just act like a child; playing with her hair, making pouty faces and licking a lollipop. In fact, that was used as a photo for several newspapers. 'KIDNAPPER WITH THE MIND OF A CHILD: IS CATHY WILSON REALLY SANE?'

And underneath was in one paper, a picture of her aged fifteen, just before she ran away, a sulky 2000s teenager, with a cell phone in her hand and her hair in a ponytail with a scrunchie.

The most disgusting teenager in Britain, they called her, placing her alongside some other evil British women, from cases as far back as Mike's childhood.

Mike put the paper down as he looked. It was the weekend and all the children had gone in their rooms. With the exception of Harry and Floss coming down to watch a DVD, it was quiet.

He just sighed, looking through. How could he make this better for everyone?

Johnny had arrived in Japan that evening. As people rushed round the airport, he kept noticing pictures on the walls and at check-ins. Pictures of Faith, Tee and other girls thought to be in Asia. In fact, a few tourists in groups were looking at them and pointing to the pictures, particularly Tee, who looked really young and pretty, whereas Faith's picture was of her frowning.

When he got to the streets, he realised he had absolutely no idea what to do.

One option was to find the British Embassy, but they'd send him back. He just had to try to find Tee. He knew that somebody rich might have brought her, it was very likely.

But he'd landed in Tokyo and she could be anywhere.

Johnny had never felt so alone.

Tee missed him as well.

But she needed a way to live this life. She couldn't use the computer, she couldn't understand the Japanese instructions there. She was separated by language from everyone else here, though Kaede had made sure the servants who talked to her knew English, or at least enough to follow instructions.

She now just wore kimonos or when some visitors had come round, business suits. Kaede had introduced her as his 'young wife' to everyone and Tee had learnt to be formal.

Her hair was still black and short, her body thin from stress, as she felt she couldn't eat, and her eyes red from tears every night, but she had to keep telling herself she had to keep going.

To spend her days at home, she had been taught a few things by some of the servants. One of the women, the one who'd taken her to the hotel, was trying to teach her the 'tea ceremony', though Tee found it old-fashioned and sexist.

"It is not sexist," the woman kept telling her, "it is a Japanese custom. Remember, tea is drunk first by the host, then the guests. As his wife, you will drink after him, but before the guests."

Tee then asked a question that had been on her mind all the time she'd been in Japan. "But surely fourteen is too young to be a wife in Japan."

Then the woman frowned. "I was afraid you may say that. He lied on the marriage application."

Tee's eyes grew wide.

"He was expecting an older girl. And he didn't sign his name properly, so technically, you are not married. But if you want, when you are old enough, he wants a small ceremony away from Tokyo."

Tee murmured something, then went on with the ceremony.

That night, Kaede had invited some friends round and was talking about a business meeting. Tee felt nervous – aside from some meals by herself in her room, this would be the first time she'd had a meal with anyone in ages.

The visitors were two men and a woman, all in their forties and in business wear. Tee heard them downstairs in the lounge as she put her kimono on, a purple one with a red sash, and did her hair up. Then she walked across to the dining room.

The table, the _chabudai_, was floor level and Tee remembered she had to sit with her legs to one side.

As the guests came in with Kaede, he gestured his arm to Tee, and introduced her in Japanese. Then all three of them nodded their heads at her.

When they'd sat down, Kaede announced to them something in Japanese, which they asked questions about and then talked quickly. Then Kaede told Tee, "I have good news. There is a shipping offer in a few days. We are delivering goods to the US. We haven't been able to do that before. So we can now afford a lot more things!"

Tee was slightly taken aback. "Really?"

"Yes. We go tomorrow to Cape Shirepa on Hokkaido island. I make the shipping deals there and then we can get everything sorted."

Tee nodded, though she really didn't know how she should feel.

Of course, she knew that she should feel happy for someone she liked to get a good offer.

Liked. Not loved.

The only man in her life was Johnny and that was until she decided to ever go out with anyone.

She knew it was hard to move on with her life, but she really didn't want to do this and live here. She wanted to be with Johnny. Just Johnny.

When the guests had left and the food was cleared away, Kaede asked Tee, "Do you want to know what I've been thinking?"  
"What?"

"Well, I understand the people who took you are now in jail but if I get a good offer, I could hire some people…and they could go to Britain. And get Johnny for you, if that's what makes you happy."

Tee was too shocked to say anything.

It was illegal, and she didn't want Johnny to go through the fear she had when with Mr Kelly and Ms Wilson, but if she _had_ to stay here, it would be the next best thing to going.

"Are you certain?" she asked. Kaede nodded. "In Asia, it is not unheard of for extended family to live with the husband and wife."

Tee just didn't know how to answer.

"Johnny could be with me…" she slowly spoke to herself.

And after that, she was truly brainwashed.

**A/N: Do you like it? Well, I just want to know because I haven't got many reviews. Thanks!**


	8. Chapter 8

Finding Her

**A/N: I know that it's summer and a lot of you might be busy, but please, I'd like reviews. Thank you!**

Johnny had simply no idea what to do.

He was scruffy, had barely slept and had spent hours outside the airport in Tokyo with a poster of Tee and trying to get people's attention. Not being able to understand Japanese made it worse.

It had been over twenty-four hours and he just had no idea what to do. He was a runaway in a foreign country, he had almost nothing on him, he had no idea how to speak the language, he was exhausted, hungry and dreary, he just wouldn't give up.

He was sitting by the bench by a restaurant about a mile from the airport, holding the poster, when he heard someone asking a question above him.

He looked up and a woman was there, in a business suit. She asked again and Johnny shook his head, to say he couldn't understand her.

She tried again, in what Johnny suspected was French. Then German. And a few other languages, before Johnny shook his head.

Then she tried, "You know girl?" Johnny nodded.

Then she told him, "Two months ago, I went to wedding. She looks a bit like bride."

Johnny asked, "Where?"

"A hotel near here. The – 'Pink Feather Hotel'. Lot of tourist."

Johnny smiled, as she then got out a notebook and drew a map. Johnny ran, heart pounding, to the Pink Feather Hotel.

It was rather beautiful, with gold gates and two fountains inside that looked like dolphins. The car park nearby was full, with a high orange brick wall.

Even so, Johnny knew it was too dangerous to climb over.

But he looked round, trying to find some way.

There was an entrance nearby where cars were coming through.

He took a chance and ran through the entrance, ignoring a shouting Japanese guard. He ran inside through a side door and peered round.

A marble corridor with glass walls. Where now? He looked at a sign. It was in Japanese, but had a picture of a shower underneath.

He took it.

Ten minutes later, he'd washed and changed. He couldn't understand what was shampoo, deodorant or floor polish, so he used a block of soap. The clothes he'd taken were also mix-matched, a jacket and trousers from an employee, keeping the same shirt.

When he'd got out, he saw some employees crowded around the front desk. Then some looked in his direction and started gabbling.

Then one of them, presumably the manager, walked right up to Johnny and asked, "What are you doing?"

Johnny didn't answer.

"One of the employees saw you come in. are you stealing something?"

Johnny mumbled, "I…I'm looking for my sister."

"What?" the manager asked.

"My sister. I think she married here about two months ago."

The manager frowned and turned round to the desk. "And why is that important?"

"Because she's fourteen."

The manager's eyes grew wide and he stared at him. "Fourteen?"

Johnny nodded. Then the manager swiftly ran back to the desk, said something to the receptionist and then gestured for Johnny to come in the room behind the reception.

It was a study, with filing cabinets and a few computers. The manager drew himself up at a desk, just by the receptionist, and typed a few things in.

Johnny couldn't understand what was written on the monitor but he assumed it was the wedding list.

The manager told him, "We keep records for up to a year after the wedding. Do you know the groom's name?"

"No, but my sister was white and didn't speak Japanese; surely that stood out?"

The manager murmured something, before getting up some camera footage. "This is the day of the wedding I think you mean."

Johnny peered at the screen of the chapel. A tall Japanese man in a suit. And Tee, standing right next to him.

Johnny felt a lump in his throat but answered, "That's my sister."

After some questioning by the manager, and later the police when they arrived, the police had filed a report.

And Johnny was to be sent back.

"I'm sorry," the officer told him, "but you are a runaway and other things beside. But don't worry, she'll be back soon."

Johnny interrupted, raising his voice, "They've always said that! Everyone's turned me away because they think it's dangerous! I want Tee!"

"Listen, we can find her easily. If you're here, you're putting yourself in the way."

Cathy Wilson was still being questioned by police.

"We got a message from Japan that Theresa Taylor's buyer has possibly been found. Now, we need you to give us the whereabouts of the other Ashdene Ridge girls."

Cathy just leaned back in her chair, ignoring them.

"The teenage girls are in most danger, Cathy, and you know it! You're letting them suffer because of _your_ stupid foolishness! They're out there and if we don't get them soon, it may be too late!"

Then Cathy muttered, "Greece. And China. The Med kid's in Greece and the black one's in China." Then she asked, "Will I have my sentence reduced if I give information?"

Carmen was at the lounge in Greece. She was sipping one of his bar's drinks. She didn't know what was in it, she saw him put a load of liquids from small glass bottles in, but she knew it was very fizzy.

Then it was an international channel playing on the TV, English with Greek subtitles underneath.

"_And the international kidnappers have released the whereabouts of two of the missing children; one in Greece and one in China. These girls were two of their victims who were sold as wives abroad. We will give you more news as it comes_."

Carmen looked round her. The only people interested seemed a group of bored American tourists.

They didn't really seem to be enjoying themselves – just a group of college graduates with bottles. One commented, "Idiots. How they got those kids past the border I don't know."

Another answered, "Some twits just see women as objects. So they brought them."

Carmen looked down. She _was not_ an object; Nikolas didn't view her like that!

Then one of them asked, "Hey, what's the matter?" she looked up, seeing they were looking at her.

She just said back, "Not very well."

"Why you here then?"

"It's for my health." She lied, trying not to think about the fact that the law were closing in on them.

She just felt so nervous. On one hand, it was nice to see everybody again, but she just felt close loyalty to Nikolas and she didn't want to see him arrested.

His only crime was buying a fifteen-year-old girl to marry. And yes, that actually _was_ pretty bad, but they were willing to wait until she was old enough to do anything. It wasn't like she was locked up or pregnant or anything that cruel!

When she lay by the pool that night, with entertainment going on behind her for the guests, mostly dancing and music, Becky came up to her.

"Carmen," she asked, "do you want to go back?"

Carmen shrugged. "I don't really know. I'm leaving care soon; I'll be old enough to get a job, live by myself. But I don't want to. I'm scared to grow up. I can't leave. And it's not like Nikolas or Andreas are even that cruel or demanding to us! I miss my friends so much but – I don't want to leave."

Becky put an arm round her. "Carmen, I miss my friends as well, so I know what you mean. They're so tiny. But – it looks as if Nikolas and Andreas may be arrested."

After an hour and a half, when the entertainment was finishing and the guests were going back to their villas, the employees cleaning up, the police cars arrived.

Carmen stood with Becky on the bridge by the pool, holding hands, worrying.

When a police officer came up to them on the bridge, he asked, "Are you Carmen Howle?"

Carmen asked him, frowning slightly, prepared for this, "Where are you taking my husband?"

He then told her, alarmed, "Carmen, you're safe now."

"Where are you taking my husband!" Carmen demanded, as Becky held her close.

"Officer," Becky drew breath, "Nikolas brought her…and my name is Becky Braun. I was taken a year ago. Andreas is my loving husband."

At the police station, some officers and translators had taken Carmen in one room, Becky in another. "Now," one translator was saying to Carmen, "we have arrested Nikolas for illegally buying you and marrying you while you were too young. You do understand what that means?"

Carmen abruptly answered, "That my husband made me marry him. I understand that, but I _love_ him!"

Then the translator asked, "Carmen, do you know what Stockholm Syndrome is?"

Carmen nearly shouted, "I know what it is! You don't understand me! I love that man and yes, I know I'm too young, but please, all he wanted was someone."

"Carmen, what he did was illegal. He might have lost his job, being a hotel manager. Thank God the resort won't be closed, aside from your villa; the tourists are demanding money back."

Carmen nearly sobbed, but kept it in, telling them, "If I stayed in Britain, do you have any idea what I would have lived with? I'm young, I'm in care, I'm Spanish! I'd get a job in a shop or cleaning! Out here, I was happy! Yes, I know my friends miss me and I know that they want to see me, but I have feelings for Nikolas."

In Britain, Mike was distraught. All these kids missing, endless questioning, the possibility of him and May-Li being arrested…but now the officer that came seemed happy.

"Mr Milligan," she began, while she sat on the chair opposite his desk, "we have good news. We found a resort in Greece and Carmen Howle was there."

Mike put his hands over his mouth and nose. May-Li smiled, overjoyed.

"But there is a problem," the officer went on, and Mike looked up, "she refuses to testify."

"What!" Mike exclaimed, stunned.

"We believe she has Stockholm Syndrome, as does another girl we found her with from another abduction, but she's claiming that she never interacted with the culprit."

"Interacted?" Mike asked. Then it dawned on him.

"You think…?"

"We are not certain if anything took place, but she seems happy. Said something about Britain not being fair and being in Greece, she belonged."

Mike swore under his breath and then asked, "When will she come back?"

"Well, after a physical examination and any evidence collected from the villa she stayed at, as well as testimonies from any staff that were there and collecting the marriage record, around a month."

"A month!" Mike shouted. "We've waited six weeks! I kept thinking she may be dead, especially what happened to Frank!"

The officer put a hand up. "Mr Milligan, we are doing our best. We still have two more of your children to find and Cathy Wilson is being a great help. We think that by August, you'll all be together. However, we are certain that Carmen will need a lot of counselling."

Mike could hardly believe this. Carmen, the girl he'd looked after, was now just a willing drone.

Then the officer's pager beeped and she smiled. "Good news. It seems Johnny Taylor has been found in Japan. He ran away. And it looks like he may have used your credit card. And we have some evidence Theresa may be there. But we're not certain."


	9. Chapter 9

Finding Faith

**A/N: Seriously, I'd like some reviews please, I haven't got many and I worked hard on this. I'm not too demanding but I really would like appreciation.**

The knock on the door came at seven, the sun shining right on it. A sharp, quick knock.

Then the door opened and a servant stood there.

"We are looking for Jinsong, is he in?" the police officer demanded. The servant shook his head. "Are you certain he isn't in, we need to speak with him."

Then Jinsong appeared at the top of the staircase in a red robe. "Yes?" he asked, not quite knowing it was the police.

Then his eyes widened and he ran in his room. The officers barged past the servant and ran after him.

In his room, Jinsong had got a carved knife from under his bed and they saw he was holding it round the throat of a young dark girl.

"You come any closer and I kill her!" he shouted.

The first officer raised his hands slightly. "Let the girl go."

Jinsong smiled wickedly. "No, she is my wife and she is mine. I make her do what I say. She is mine."

"You married illegally, Jinsong. You could be executed for marrying an underage girl."

"She is mine. She is my loving wife."

Then he leant down and kissed her on the hair. She looked frightened as she barely stood by him.

Then Jinsong toppled over, a dart in his neck, paralysing him.

The officers began dragging him outside while one sat near the girl. She was thin, her clothes hanging off her, her hair completely cut to her head, bruises under her eyes and wounds on her skin.

He said what he had rehearsed, in bad English, "You Faith?"

She nodded. "We take home."

With a translator at the station, Faith explained what had happened to her since she married.

He'd made her sleep on the floor when he'd been in a bad mood. And that was if she was lucky.

He locked her in a tiny closet when he had visitors round, in case they paid too much attention to her. The closet was the size of a coffin, she had to stand.

He made her dress in traditional Chinese robes, white, red, green. He never let her wear a skirt, saying she was his wife.

He'd cut her off her hair because it was hard to put up in a bun. Jinsong had even brought a bunch of pregnancy tests and he'd shut them in a drawer. But Faith didn't say if she'd used any.

He'd forced her to cook their meals, the recipes in Chinese, and she'd struggled. She'd woken up several times looking at him, she'd been made to call him 'husband' in Chinese, not Jinsong. While some guests had been confused once, seeing a tired, worried girl at the table with him when she'd brought dinner, he just said she was the new maid and didn't speak Chinese.

In fact, they were so anxious, they reported it.

Faith was asked if Jinsong had ever made her use a pregnancy test, and when she'd replied, she called him her husband. She'd been completely manipulated.

At Ashdene Ridge, Mike listened as an officer told him Faith had been found.

"We have no idea what sort of condition she's in, whether she's brainwashed or not, she just seems like a servant. I can't tell you what happened yet, but we are examining her for pregnancy or diseases."

Mike put his head in his hands, close to sobbing. This was _worse_ than Carmen. "A dead boy, two traumatised boys, a girl with Stockholm Syndrome and a girl who may be sick." He muttered. Ashdene Ridge was never going to be the same again.

Then he asked, "When can she come home?"

"Within days. The Chinese are working fast, but their laws mean that if Jinsong is found guilty, he'll be executed."

Mike never wanted anyone dead, but he murmured, "Good!"

May-Li asked, "Mike?"

"Listen, this…sicko has hurt her. I mean, really hurt her. She might have lost confidence! She might have to stay here or at another legal place until she's God know how old! She may _never_ get better, May-Li! This…is my toughest time yet and I am really broken, I really am!"

May-Li tried telling him, "Mike, I'm broken too, but…"

"_I_ was left for dead while they took the children abroad! They let Frank die! They've brainwashed Carmen! I really don't know _what_ to do!"

Then he couldn't hold it. He put his elbows on the desk and began weeping.

In Japan, Tee sat on the veranda on the garden, looking over the sea. Wearing a cream and purple kimono, she looked out. She and Kaede had arrived that morning and he was talking to some American officials while she just looked out at the sea.

Kaede had simply got out of the car with her and introduced her as his new bride to some Japanese people, who all nodded at her and then she went with a couple of women to the veranda. One of the children sat nearby with a handheld puzzle.

Tee just looked out and wondered exactly how Kaede could find Johnny. Would he make somebody go to Britain and abduct him? How would it work?

She may never see Mike or May-Li or anyone else at Ashdene again, but the thought of seeing Johnny again would make her life better.

The child then called to Tee. She went over and he walked into the living room where one of the women was, by a table.

"I am sorry we were not at the wedding," the woman said slowly, "but I decided to give my gift here."

She passed forward a pink box with lilac ribbon and Tee opened it. Inside was a tiny necklace, two white feathers. "Thank you!" she smiled, putting it on.

The woman then said, "I will wait until Fukui-_san_ returns before I give him his gift."

Tee smiled, looking down at her necklace. "I'm sure he'll like it."

Then she saw some lights outside. She looked further and saw cars. Police cars.

Going to the door, she saw a police officer come up to her.

"Are you Theresa Taylor?" she nodded. "We are taking you back to Britain."

When Tee was at the police station, with an officer and a translator, she was asked if she had ever interacted with Kaede. She simply answered, "Kaede has done nothing to me. He did the marriage with a fake record, he said he'll do it properly when I'm old enough."

The officer raised an eyebrow but decided this was just another Stockholm case.

Whatever the situation, it would be a long time for these girls to recover.


	10. Chapter 10

An End to the Nightmare

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long, but thanks for any reviews I received!**

Even though everyone at Ashdene Ridge was back, and most of the abducted children had returned, Mike was still reeling from what had gone on.

Faith had gone for a medical examination and taken a pregnancy test.

Frank was dead, buried in a casket in a graveyard over seventy miles away, the only graveyard that would offer.

Bailey and Tyler had been servants and had signs of exhaustion and misery.

Carmen stayed in her room all the time, ordering things like pomegranate juice and called herself Nikolas' wife.

Tee only wore kimonos and screamed to keep her wedding ring. Even Johnny couldn't convince her to let go.

And Rick, Jody, Harry, Floss and Mo were just confused by everything that had happened.

Mike didn't know how he could live through all this and be able to handle what was happening. It was just such a relief when Faith hadn't got any diseases and was being offered free counselling, but with reporters standing outside the gates, Carmen and Tee insisting that they were married, even though the marriages were sham, and Cathy still psychologically taunting him, he just seemed to fall apart.

Tee sat by her windowsill, roughly three weeks after she had returned, still with a slight jet lag, waking up in the middle of the night, when Mike came in. "Tee?" he asked.

She turned to him. "Yes?"

Mike knew this would be the most difficult conversation he'd have with any child.

"Tee, you do realise what Cathy was?"

Tee raised an eyebrow. "She took us."

"Yes, but, you need to hear this."

"I know she killed her fiancée's mother," Tee interrupted, "she was in the way of their love."

She was almost robotic. Mike just breathed in and tried his best. "She was fifteen. In love. And she hated care and everything it did to her. She killed for love, because she and Mr Kelly – he's actually called Robinson – they were just too young and didn't understand.

"They ended up killing and ruining their lives and the lives of every child they took. Just think about it, Tee. Would you really have been happy with Kaede?"

He just walked out, leaving her to think about it.

Tee knew he was right. And she was just far too young to understand.

She was fourteen, she was twenty-eight. He was in charge of a business in Japan, she was a British orphan.

But he had been kind and admirable and had actually understood her and felt for her. Even if she'd only been a few years older, they could have been allowed to be together.

She closed her eyes and thought.

_One day_.

**A/N: Sorry it's short, but I really couldn't think of a good ending. I tried for ages and I hope you like it. As you may have guessed, I took some of the inspiration from **_**Taken**_**.**

**I would like to thank my reviewers and I am happy I entertained you. I just wonder what classic movie I could get inspiration from next…**


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